February 6, 2013

OK… Be honest. How are those New Year’s resolutions working out for you?

Are you really getting up at 6 a.m. to hit the gym every morning? Have you finally kicked your cookie habit in favor of carrot sticks? What about that Facebook addiction? Have you stopped checking it 42 times a day, or are you white-knuckling it, wondering how many status updates, friend requests, and “pokes” you’re missing?
If your New Year’s resolutions sounded a whole lot better in theory than they’re doing in execution, you’re not alone. However, there are some resolutions you just can’t afford to fail at in 2013 — your content marketing resolutions!

So, how are those going? Specifically, are you:

Sticking to your promise of quality over quantity?
Should you e-mail your list three times a week? That depends. Do you have interesting, informative things to talk about three times a week? If you’re e-mailing just for the sake of e-mailing, you’re not doing anyone any favors. In fact, you’ll probably be seen as a nuisance and wind up with a whole bunch of unsubscribers! (Not exactly the reputation you wanted to develop in 2013, is it?)

Get the idea of a “schedule” out of your head. Instead, send e-mails, update your blog, and publish other content only when you have something great to share. That way, your readers will know that if it’s coming from you, it’s good.
Sounds simple, right? And, as an added benefit, this resolution is a whole lot easier to stick to than that 6 a.m. gym thing!

Avoiding the temptation of getting caught up in link lust?

Quick and dirty backlinks are soooo not cool anymore. Oh sure, you know that buying links is bad, but try “spinning” and “blasting” an article all over the web and see where it gets you. (Hint: you’ll wind up with a herd of Google Pandas and Penguins pouncing on you so fast it will make your head spin!)

If 2012 taught us nothing else about SEO, it taught us that Google isn’t kidding when it comes to quality content. From their perspective, if you publish great content, the great links will come. If you get overcome by link lust, you’ll simply look like you’re trying to cheat the system.

So, instead of raising a slew of red flags in Silicon Valley, just keep two words in mind — “quality” and “authority.” Only attach your name to quality content, and only publish it on authority websites. Make those two words part of your content marketing resolutions, and you’ll be much happier in 2013. Yes, it may take you longer to see success than you did with the quick and dirty techniques, but this success will actually last.

Building a relationship with your content writer, instead of playing the field?

You don’t have to do all of the writing yourself to stick to your content marketing resolutions. In fact, if you’re not a particularly good writer — or if you simply don’t have the time to devote to writing kick-butt stuff — finding a great writer should have been one of your content marketing resolutions this year.

So, have you done it yet? And, more importantly, have you actually found someone you can build a relationship with?

Remember, even the best writer in the world isn’t a mind-reader. Sure, you can give him some instructions, but as the two of you work together over time, your writer will learn a whole lot more about you, your business, and your target audience. By learning more about what makes all three of you tick, your writer will be able to give you an even better finished product.

(That’s not to say you shouldn’t be getting dynamite stuff from the very beginning. You should be. But, as you go along, you’ll find that a good writer will “mesh” with you even better.)

Plus, when you build a relationship with a writer, your business gets to develop a single “voice.” If you play the field — and constantly bounce from one writer to the next — there isn’t going to be any continuity on your blog, in your sales copy, in your guest posts, etc. As a result, your readers won’t feel like they’re talking to “you.” Instead, they’ll feel like they’re talking to a bunch of different people, and that’s no way to build a relationship with them. After all, people relate best to other people — not nameless, faceless corporate entities. And if they don’t relate to you, they’re not going to buy from you.

Nicole Beckett may not be able to help you hit the gym at 6 a.m., but she can help you stick to your content marketing resolutions. To see what she can do for you, visit Premier Content Source.